


No Nation Of You

by GunnerPalace



Category: Gintama
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-28
Updated: 2016-10-28
Packaged: 2018-08-27 13:48:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8404057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GunnerPalace/pseuds/GunnerPalace
Summary: This originally started as a prompt-fic on Tumblr that sort of spun out into its own narrative. There will be more installments; the Explicit rating was selected with those in mind, rather than what presently exists (which is only General for now). The setting of it is nebulous but it's sometime after the Love Potion arc.





	1. Odd Jobs, Odd Ends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally for the prompt "What the hell happened to you?"

He slowly opened his eyes to the grid of a traditional Japanese ceiling and blinked. Where was he? It took him a second to remember his name was Sakata Gintoki.

“So, yer finally awake. Took ya long enough.”

He turned his head toward the voice to find  _her_. A host of memories flickered through his mind. The  _Shinigami tayū_  sitting  _seiza_  style beside his futon didn’t resemble the one in most of them. She was wearing her usual outfit, but looked serene and relaxed.

Tsukuyo regarded him with mild amusement. “I was beginnin’ ta wonder if ya might jus' ‘a decided ta become Sleepin’ Beauty.”

Gintoki studied her with growing confusion before starting to sit up.

She reached a hand onto the blanket that covered him, holding him down. “'Ey, jus’ take it easy now, yer still in no shape ta be movin’ about too suddenly.”

“What am I doing in Yoshiwara?” The last thing he could remember was a job with Shinpachi and Kagura in eastern Edo and...

She scratched a cheek with her free hand, looking aside. “Well, ya crashed yer bike nearby an’ my Hyakka found ya. Knew who ya were ‘cause ‘a all ya done fer us. Ya were pretty banged up, an’ not just from the crash—” She stopped as she realized he was trying to sit up again and staring intently at her. “Shinpachi an’ Kagura are in Kabukichō, I called ‘em when we found ya; they said ya’d sent ‘em on back ahead ‘a ya.”

His expression eased and he fell back against the futon.

Tsukuyo considered him again, perplexed. “Do ya not remember doin’ that?”

Gintoki pointedly kept his gaze on the ceiling as though searching for answers. They’d been doing a job that’d taken them all over the city—it was a really stupid stakeout on a wife whose husband suspected her of cheating on him—and... Yes, he’d sent them back since they’d been out all day and it was clearly a waste of time...

She withdrew her hand, laying both palms on her knees and leaning on them as she reviewed what she knew. “When the Hyakka brought ya in, it seemed like ya’d been in a bar fight. Ya reeked ‘a booze, yer clothes were wet with it, an’ ya had a bunch ‘a circular wounds on yer back we had ta pick glass outta. Ya’d lost a fair bit ‘a blood too, which might be why ya crashed, though it seemed like whatever ya drank kept ya from goin’ tense... What tha hell happened ta ya?”

“I don’t remember much after sending them home,” he admitted.

Tsukuyo shifted her jaw and inhaled sharply a few moments later. “Well, ain’t no point gettin’ too worked up over it, yer alive and e'ryone’s safe.” She pushed herself up and navigated around him, gesturing to a door. “Bathroom’s over there if ya gotta use the toilet. Got ya bathed not four hours ago, so no sense in that. Ya ain’t eaten in two days so I’ll see ‘bout getting’ ya some food an’ water.”

He processed that for a second, blinking. “Hey, wait, what? Who bathed me?  _You_?”

She’d already left through another door and shut it behind her before he finished speaking.

He stared at it for awhile before grimacing and slowly sitting up with a wince. Suddenly he really had to pee.

* * *

Gintoki found his clothes waiting for him on the bathroom’s vanity. After getting himself sorted, he switched out of the  _yukata_  he’d woken up in and took note of the bandages on himself. His clothes had been washed and there did indeed seem to be some puncture wounds that’d been mended on the back of them. It was then all the oddities started to intrude on his awareness.

First of all, his clothes smelled... pretty. Gintoki lifted an arm and sniffed at his sleeve—it smelled of lilac. It was when it slid down his arm that he caught a whiff of himself— _he_  smelled like lavender and vanilla. He frowned at that and decided Tsukuyo hadn’t been playing with him.

He began looking around. The bathroom appeared unusually lived in from what he’d seen of Yoshiwara. The bathing area was decently spacious and feminine-looking bottles lined its shelves.

He evaluated it with a raised eyebrow for a second more, then returned to where the futon was and studied the room. It was rather spartan, but comfortable. There were no obvious clues as to whose place it was. Something about it was familiar, though...

Tsukuyo came back bearing several  _bentō_  boxes just when he was on the verge of exploring some more. “See ya found yer clothes. Had ‘em washed, an’ Hinowa tried ta patch ‘em up as best she could.”

“Is that why I smell like a spring meadow?”

She ignored him and carried the boxes over to a  _chabudai_  in an adjoining dining area. “We figured ya got a bunch ‘a outfits like that given how ya never seem ta change clothes.”

He slowly followed—the more he moved about, the more the extent of his injuries became apparent. “This isn’t one of the guest rooms in the mansion.” He stated it as a fact.

She distributed the  _bentō_  into two piles, apparently knowing what was whose by their order. “Yer right, it’s not.” She then made her way to the small kitchen nearby and returned with a jug of water and cups.

After a brief pause he sat down at the other spot. He was glad to get off his feet and the aroma of food made him realize he was starving. “So, what, did you commandeer someone’s apartment?”

She nonchalantly sat opposite him and poured water into the cups. “It’s mine.”

Gintoki looked at her with dull surprise, then peered down at the boxes before him.

Tsukuyo opened hers. “What’re ya embarrassed ‘a? That ya’ve been sleepin’ in my livin’ room, or that I bathed ya in my tub?”

“Who’s embarrassed?” he groused.

“Ain’t like it’s tha first time I’ve seen it, ya know,” she mused. It’d been considerably less crude an event than the other occasions at any rate. She was oblivious to the pink shade that’d taken hold of her cheeks as she started to dig in.

He said nothing and opened his boxes. It was typical fare, although he paused as he noticed the second appeared to hold a square parfait as dessert. He glanced up at her.

She wasn’t paying him even the slightest bit of attention.

He looked back down at the food and began to eat in silence.

* * *

By the time he put down the spoon that’d accompanied the parfait, he’d made up his mind. He finished off his cup of water and forced himself to his feet. “Well, it’s been fun, but I should really get going.”

Tsukuyo blinked.

Gintoki turned without another word. He made it all of a meter before she was behind him.

She seized one of his wrists and applied just enough force to one of his aggravated pressure points as to be disabling but not injurious. “'Ey, whatcha doin’?”

He immediately froze. He couldn’t even complain about how it hurt.

“Yer in no state ta travel and yer bike’s still trashed. Gengai’ll be here ta look at it tomorrow. Ya need ta jus’ stay put fer now.” She gradually eased her grip while steering him back toward the futon.

Gintoki complied just to get her to stop. She released him once they were next to it.

“Sit down an’ lemme clean tha table,” Tsukuyo instructed.

He finally exhaled and did as he was told for once, all-but-collapsing onto the futon. It felt oddly comfortable all of a sudden.

She spared him a glance before busying herself with cleaning.

He sat for a while, quiet, until he realized he was breathing more heavily than normal. As he focused on it, he began to truly discern how much everything in him ached. His back burned, his legs throbbed, and something about his head made him feel like he was swimming. He reached a hand up to his forehead, suddenly keenly aware of his pulse.

Tsukuyo noticed and hurried. She soon approached the futon from the other side and sat down on it, placing her hands lightly on his shoulders.

Gintoki tensed.

She squeezed reassuringly. “I keep tellin’ ya not ta strain yerself. Yer hurt. It’s okay ta admit it, Gintoki.”

He relaxed, but didn’t say anything. Why was she doing all this? All he voiced of that train of thought was “Why?”

“Ya’ve done so much fer us… fer  _me_ … an’ ya gotta ask that?” Her voice was a whisper.

Gintoki's head dropped.

Tsukuyo brought her hands to his neck and started to gently massage him. “Jus’ fer once, lemme take care ‘a ya…”

There was no point in resisting. He found he didn’t even really want to. He sat with her, silently accepting her attention.

Eventually, she pulled him back while turning him to one side. Gintoki moved as she directed, soon finding his head cradled against her belly and thighs. She was... really soft and warm...

Tsukuyo’s cheeks went pink again. Even so, she resumed massaging his neck with one hand and began brushing his hair with the other.

Finally, he closed his eyes.

She smiled softly.


	2. A Brand New Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally for the GinTsu Week Day 3 prompt “Confession." The next day...

Gintoki woke slowly, regaining awareness at a steady pace. He was immersed in the scent of lavender and vanilla— _her_  scent. The heat against his forehead surely came from Tsukuyo’s neck and clavicles. The soft texture against his mouth was her  _kimono_. (It seemed important to know she was still clothed.) Her chest was pressed against the top of his and her arms were around him. One of her hands held his head to her, while his own rested on her sides. He felt her breath wend through his hair regularly and her pulse was sluggish—she was asleep. His attention remained on her presence for a long time.

Finally, he opened his eyes. He couldn’t see because of how she was holding him, but he knew it was daytime. The distant, happy chatter of birds filtered to him from some other room facing the exterior—her bedroom? They seemed to enjoy diving into the cavernous expanse of Yoshiwara. His focus eventually returned to her and he closed his eyes again, unwilling to wake her up.

Gintoki's head didn’t hurt nearly as much as the previous day, which meant he was free to think. Tsukuyo had held onto him and babied him until he’d fallen asleep. She must’ve decided to stay, and he honestly couldn't say he minded. It was very... It’d been a long time since he’d really woken up next to a woman, even if... His mind turned to how he’d wound up in this situation. It was still hard to recall what’d happened, oddly enough.

He forced himself to follow his memories, using the details she’d provided as clues. He’d given Kagura and Shinpachi money for public transportation to head back to Kabukichō once it’d become clear their tailing job was a bust. They’d left Sadaharu at the shop. Then he’d… he’d gone to a nearby bar to blow off some steam. It’d been a dive, but that described a lot of places he went to. He’d been minding his own business, but the locals kept going after the serving girl.

That’s when he’d done what he always did. That’s when the bottles started getting broken and they started going for his kidneys.

There’d been a lot of them, but Gintoki had won and driven off. Apparently, he hadn’t made it as far as he intended. Alcohol thinned the blood, and if he’d lost enough, it’d probably done him in sufficiently to lose control and crash.

He imagined the layout of everything, building a mental map. Yoshiwara was kind of a detour from the shortest way back. Had he been heading there deliberately...? A change in Tsukuyo's heart rate and breathing abruptly pulled him from his thoughts.

She let out a cute noise and shifted against him, opening her eyes to find she’d buried her face in a full head of silver hair. Her eyes immediately widened and she flared red, tensing up.  _Ah god…_

He stayed still as she actually clutched him tighter to her. “We’re clothed. I woke up like this too,” Gintoki said quietly.

Tsukuyo blinked and turned an even deeper red at the fact he was awake, but relaxed at his assertion.  _Yeah, that’s right…_  As she focused on them, she could tell it was true. She was silent for an endless moment, burning against his hair and stuck thinking about how good it smelled.

“Hi,” he eventually ventured.

“... Hiya,” she murmured.

Gintoki considered asking to be let go before deciding he didn’t really want to be. He thought of the prior day. “What are you embarrassed of?”

Tsukuyo let out a huff and muttered, “Who’s embarrassed?” She’d chosen to hold him, so why should she be ashamed of anything? But, if that was so, then why was she...?

There was a long pause. Finally, he exhaled and became as earnest as he could manage. “Thank you.”

She looked down at his hair curiously, some of her blush dispersing. “... Fer what?”

He was silent for a while before he spoke. “I remember most of what happened. I think I was deliberately heading here afterwards.” It had certainly been closer than Kabukichō. Why he’d sought her out rather than proper medical attention, he couldn’t really say. Maybe his wounds hadn’t seemed very serious at the time—he might not have been thinking clearly. What he could say for sure, as he lay there with her, was that he believed in her. “I was hoping you’d find me, and soon you did. So.”

Tsukuyo blinked and flushed again. He’d been coming to see her in such a state? “Yer an idiot. Why wouldn’t ya jus’ go ta a hospital?”

He closed his eyes. “Because I  _trust_  you.”

She stared at his hair for a second and shut her eyes as well. The emphasis on the word gave away that so many other meanings were contained within it.

There was another quiet spell. Gintoki listened to the thump of her heart throughout. “Let me see you?”

Tsukuyo scowled. She was still pink. “What do ya wanna do that fer?”

“I can ask nicely.”

She clenched her jaw for a second in indecision, then loosened her grasp on him.

He pulled back from her a bit and scooted up, bringing his head onto the pillow so they faced each other. She looked really abashed and had taken the small  _kunai_  out of her hair. The way her fringe framed her face was... He reflexively smiled.

Her eyes found his and she stared. They usually looked glassy, distant, and lifeless—except when he was fighting. Right then, though, in that moment, he looked so alive. Even that stupid little smile of his...

Gintoki saw her pupils dilate and watched her for a short time. At last, he gave her side a pat and turned, sitting up. “You said Gengai will be here today, right? I should probably shower. Do you mind if I go first?”

Tsukuyo bit her lip for a second. “... Gintoki...”

“I mean, you can go first if you want, it’s your place.”

She shut her eyes tightly. “Gintoki...!” She had to say something.

He paused at her tone and fell silent.

“I. I...”

He took in a breath and let it out again, tilting his head to one side.

“I—”

“Hey, if the water bill is that high, I guess we could share.”

She gaped and went red again. She only barely remembered he was injured and had to restrain herself from punching him in the back. “That’s not what I’m tryin’ ta say, ya moron!”

“I know,” he said softly.

She paused.

“But I figure... since you bathed me, I owe you a bath… And since we’ve slept together, I assumed you wouldn’t mind.”

Tsukuyo stared hard enough to put a hole through him. A memory flickered to life in her mind and she looked down with a little smile. “Ya’ve been interested in seein’ me naked ever since that one night, ain’t ya?”

He looked down too. “Before then, honestly.”

Tsukuyo pushed herself up so she sat beside but slightly behind him. She lifted a hand to his nearest shoulder “Well, I’m not drunk right now, so I won’t regret it. Besides...”

She squeezed one of his pressure points again. Gintoki’s eyes widened as his muscles seized up.

“... I know you’ll be a gentleman.” She eased her grasp.

“O—Of course!” His laugh was only a  _little_  nervous.


End file.
